'I rarely saw Novak Djokovic shout at the judge in the first set', says former Top 10

Novak Djokovic has just experienced a season full of ups and downs, also due to some choices off the pitch that have generated numerous controversies. The world number 1 had come undefeated to the suspension caused by the pandemic, having led his Serbia to triumph in the ATP Cup and clinched his 17th Grand Slam at the Australian Open. During the summer, the veteran from Belgrade decided to organize the Adria Tour without paying any attention to health protocols, a choice that turned out to be disastrous and that cast shadows on the image of the 17-time Grand Slam champion. As if this were not enough, the resounding disqualification remedied at the US Open for a shot to a line judge has arrived, without forgetting the founding of the PTPA which infuriated the leaders of the ATP. In an interview with 'Championat', former Russian champion Mikhail Youzhny tried to investigate Nole's mental state after the accident in New York. The Muscovite, current coach of Denis Shapovalov, believes that Djokovic had to spend much more energy than usual to recover from that nefarious episode.

Youzhny on Novak Djokovic’s mental state

"Yes. What happened at the US Open happened," Mikhail Youzhny continued. "But if you look closely at his psychological state, though he later won the Masters in Rome, but how much emotion it cost him." The Russian also implied that Novak Djokovic tanked his Vienna Open match against Lorenzo Sonego, since he had already secured the year-end No. 1 ranking by then. "Novak Djokovic really wanted to end the year with the first racket of the world and (he) secured all this already in Vienna," Youzhny said. "But when he achieved this, one might say, he played these two matches on his teeth, how he then played against Sonego. He just didn't play this match anymore." The Russian claimed that Novak Djokovic was on edge throughout his match against Pablo Carreno Busta in New York, even before the 'accident'. Djokovic was also unusually subdued in the Roland Garros final against Rafael Nadal, and Youzhny asserted the Serb was 'not himself'. "Yes, you can say as long as you like that it was an accident, that the ball might not have hit," Youzhny added. "But I rarely saw Novak throw balls in the first set, whatever the situation. I rarely saw Novak shout at the judge in the first set, as he did in Rome. And certainly, none of us have ever seen Novak in the final of Roland Garros was like this - not himself." 

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3huROFy